Amazon boss slammed for 'ridiculous' email sent to employees about AI taking their jobs
Topics: Amazon, Artificial Intelligence, Jobs, News, Technology
Niamh Shackleton
Featured Image Credit: Michael Nagle/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Topics: Amazon, Artificial Intelligence, Jobs, News, Technology
Amazon's CEO Andrew Jassy has sent a controversial email to employees about AI.
There are several jobs that are reportedly at risk as a result of artificial intelligence. CEO of AI company Anthropic Dario Amodei has specifically named occupations such as publicists, market researchers, and copywriters (uh oh).
He branded these as entry-level, white-collar jobs, and warned that nearly half of these roles could be wiped out by AI in just five years time.
And, apparently, some roles at Amazon are at risk as well, according to Jassy. With this in mind, the CEO warned that the business 'will reduce our total corporate workforce' in the coming years.
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"As we roll out more generative AI and agents, it should change the way our work is done," part of the memo read, per The Guardian.
He went on: "We will need fewer people doing some of the jobs that are being done today, and more people doing other types of jobs.
"It’s hard to know exactly where this nets out over time, but in the next few years, we expect that this will reduce our total corporate workforce."
Jassy continued to write that there will be 'billions' of AI agents across all companies and different fields.
"There will be billions of these agents, across every company and in every imaginable field," he said. "There will also be agents that routinely do things for you outside of work, from shopping to travel to daily chores and tasks. Many of these agents have yet to be built, but make no mistake, they’re coming, and coming fast."
With this AI takeover being somewhat out of our control, Jassy said people should 'embrace this change' and to 'educate themselves' in the new tech.
A snippet of the memo has been shared on Twitter and people have had a lot to say about it.
"This is ridiculous," said one person, as another wrote: "Funny how companies think their only job is to cut costs. Like they forget that if no one has a job, no one’s left to buy what they’re selling."
Someone else questioned: "What exactly is the message to employees here? Start looking for a job?"
Elsewhere, others have echoed similar sentiments about embracing artificial intelligence and training in specific jobs, ignoring the impact on human lives.
Speaking to BBC Radio 5, Barret Kupelian, chief economist for accounting and auditing company PricewaterhouseCoopers, said youngsters wanting to avoid AI should consider a job in traditional trades, like plumbers, electricians, and decorators.
Kupelian went on to say that there are three main sectors that'll be impacted by AI heavily.
"We are seeing a consistent pick-up of AI skills across all sectors of the economy but in particular in three main sectors, the IT, financial services and professional services sector," he said.
So, if you were looking at getting a role in one of these sectors, you should probably start reading up in all things AI now.